Oh please help with this email from my mom and sis.They just want to justify all the Walmart shoppin

[cags]

Wal-Mart
1. Americans spend $36,000,000 at Wal-Mart every hour of every day.

2. This works out to $20,928 profit every minute!

3. Wal-Mart will sell more from January 1 to St. Patrick's Day (March 17th) than Target sells all year.

4. Wal-Mart is bigger than Home Depot + Kroger + Target +Sears + Costco + K-Mart combined.

5. Wal-Mart employs 1.6 million people, is the world's largest private employer, and most speak English.

6. Wal-Mart is the largest company in the history of the world.

7. Wal-Mart now sells more food than Kroger and Safeway combined, and keep in mind they did this in only fifteen years.

8. During this same period, 31 big supermarket chains sought bankruptcy.

9. Wal-Mart now sells more food than any other store in the world.

10. Wal-Mart has approx 3,900 stores in the USA of which 1,906 are Super Centers; this is 1,000 more than it had five years ago.

11. This year 7.2 billion different purchasing experiences will occur at Wal-Mart stores. (Earth's population is approximately 6.5 Billion.)

12. 90% of all Americans live within fifteen miles of a Wal-Mart.

You may think that I am complaining, but I am really laying the ground work for suggesting that MAYBE we should hire the guys who run Wal-Mart to fix the economy.

This should be read and understood by all Americans Democrats, Republicans, EVERYONE!!

To President Obama and all 535 voting members of the Congress,

a. The U.S. Postal Service was established in 1775. You have had 234 years to get it right and it is broke.


b. Social Security was established in 1935. You have had 74 years to get it right and it is broke.

c. Fannie Mae was established in 1938. You have had 71 years to get it right and it is broke.

d. War on Poverty started in 1964. You have had 45 years to get it right; $1 trillion of our money is confiscated each year and transferred to "the poor" and they only want more.

e. Medicare and Medicaid were established in 1965.. You have had 44 years to get it right and they are broke.

f. Freddie Mac was established in 1970. You have had 39 years to get it right and it is broke.

g. The Department of Energy was created in 1977 to lessen our dependence on foreign oil. It has ballooned to 16,000 employees with a budget of $24 billion a year and we import more oil than ever before. You had 32 years to get it right and it is an abysmal failure.

You have FAILED in every "government service" you have shoved down our throats while overspending our tax dollars.

By the way; since the Eisenhower era, there have been over 200 taxes added to our taxpaying citizens. So during the times of government run agency’s failures, they had more tax money income that ever.


And you took over the Mustang Ranch in Nevada because they didn't pay their taxes, and now it is closed. You could not even run a house of prostitution.


AND YOU WANT AMERICANS TO BELIEVE YOU CAN BE TRUSTED WITH A GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTH CARE SYSTEM ??


Folks, keep this circulating. It is very well stated. Maybe it will end up in the e-mails of some of our "duly elected" (they never read anything) and their staff will clue them in on how Americans feel.

AND

I know what's wrong - We have lost our minds to "Political Correctness"

Someone please tell me what the HELL's wrong with
all the people that run this country!!!!!!


We're "broke" & can't help our own Seniors, Veterans, Orphans, Homeless etc.,???????????
In the last months we have provided aid to Haiti , Chile , and Turkey .. And now Pakistan ...... Literally, BILLIONS of DOLLARS!!!

Our retired seniors living on a 'fixed income' receive no aid nor do they get any breaks while our government pours
Hundreds of Billions of $$$$$$'s and Tons of Food to Foreign Countries! We have hundreds of adoptable children who are shoved aside to make room for the adoption of foreign orphans.

AMERICA: a country where we have homeless without shelter, children going to bed hungry, elderly going without 'needed' meds, and mentally ill without treatment -etc,etc.

YET......................
They have a 'Benefit' for the people of Haiti on 12 TV stations, ships and planes lining up with food, water, tents clothes, bedding, doctors and medical supplies.

Imagine if the *GOVERNMENT* gave 'US' the "same" support they give to other countries. Sad isn't it?

99% of people won't have the guts to forward this. I'm one of the 1% -- I Just Did

[Skittles]

1. the first part is mainly correct

http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/bigwalmart.asp

walmart makes its fortune from made in China junk

but the rest - that's all rightwing nutjob propaganda

http://mediamattersaction.org/emailchecker/200909080004

[Fumesucker]

2. How many Walmart employees are on a government assisted health insurance plan?

How many Walmart employees are on food stamps?

[Skittles]

3. A LOT of them

the American taxpayers basically subsidize the health and welfare of a rich company's employees

[Fumesucker]

13. Which is why they've been able to grow so quickly, subsidized employees. n/t

[hughee99]

28. This is what gives Walmart an advantage over it's competitors? n/t

[Bunny]

4. Two words: Dont Bother.

Seriously, why would you even try to counter this? Anyone who thinks enough of it to pass it on to their email list is not going to be swayed by any argument that you can make. Just let it go. Your blood pressure will thank you.

[cags]

9. Actually my family is very good at discussing politics without hating each others guts.

[Bunny]

11. You can like each others guts and still forego the conversation.

If you think you can make headway with them, by all means start the dialogue. But if they really believe the stuff in their email, you aren't going to convince them otherwise. So again, why bother?

My family is able to discuss politics without screaming at and disowning each other too, but we avoid it because we know we're not going to change anyone's minds.

[cags]

14. We actually love to discuss and sometimes we agree so its all good

[Bunny]

17. That's good.

I wish I could help you respond to the email, but I'm not real articulate about that sort of thing. You'll get plenty of good responses from others, I'm sure.

I have to correct my previous comment: during the '08 election, my mother told us kids that if we voted for Obama, we were "out of the will." She was joking of course, but she really doesn't like Democrats. :( :D

[cags]

19. My mother-in-law though is totally off limits for politics. Facts upset her way too much...lol

[Carolina]

34. my thoughts exactly

the OP's kin won't be swayed by reason; they've swallowed the Kool-Aid

[HopeHoops]

5. If all of your friends jumped off of a bridge, would you?

:evilgrin:

[lifesbeautifulmagic]

6. so much wrong with this, the anger and the contempt

for "the poor" people just oozes out of this message - you know, the poor people that work at Walmart, and about that trillion or billion or whatever number that "we" transfer to the poor - like in the form of state health care and food stamps for those that work at companies like Walmart that refuse to pay anything above poverty wages....

This message is also psychotic like these couple of sentences...


" $1 trillion of our money is confiscated each year and transferred to "the poor" and they only want more."

contrast with

"We're "broke" & can't help our own Seniors, Veterans, Orphans, Homeless etc.,???????????"

yes, those homeless, and seniors and vets and orphans who just suck the money and only want more. What the fuck do you want, a social savings net or no. ??

[MADem]

7. Here's how you handle that "Folks, Keep This Circulating!" shit you get in the email...

You throw it in your virtual trash.

See? Problem solved.

[tjwash]

8. Social Security isn't broke

I hate that line of bullshit every time I hear it

[wryter2000]

10. Social Security isn't broke

There's plenty of money in the fund. Social Security has never failed to make a payment to anyone.

The War on Poverty ended some time in the 1970s. Ever since Ronald Reagan took office in 1981 we've been engaged in a War on Poor People. It's going just fine, thank you.

The problem with trying to answer these things is they're a kitchen sink full of half-truths, prejudice (speaking English), and outright lies. If you contardict one thing, they assume that means the rest is accurate. No one with a life has time to debunk it all.

And you might ask them when UPS/Fedex are going to deliver letters coast-to-coast in 3 days for 44 cents. And in rural areas, the USPS makes deliveries for UPS and Fedex.

If you do reply with some...whatchacallem...facts, be sure hit "Reply to all." You'll get dropped from their list.

[CJCRANE]

12. Show them this chart: top marginal tax rate of 91% under Eisenhower

(with thanks to DUer krispos42 who posted this in another thread)

[LeftinOH]

15. The point?: "I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of Wal-Mart, and to the profitability and growth

for which she stands,
one company,
without competition,
with low-ish prices,
and acres of parking spaces
for all.

Amen.

[cags]

18. Perfect...

[joeybee12]

16. Easy to disprove, too much to say though, so how about a simple Phuck You in response?

[pinboy3niner]

21. See the links Skittles posted in #1

The Media Matters link even has a reply.

[proud2BlibKansan]

20. Oh gag me

[Iggo]

22. Tell them they're not part of the 1%, never have been, and never will be.

I had another answer, but it's your mom and your sister.

Sorry about that.:hi:

[cags]

23. No they are not! My mom is on SS and working and my sis used to make six figures she is

currently on SS and not working as her husband died at the beginning of the year and she lost her job.

[Morning Dew]

26. Tell them to go work at the workers paradise - WalMart

and quit sucking on that Social Security teat.

[Locrian]

24. typical tactic

Typical tactic.

See wallyworld IS successful - it's just that it doesn't benefit everyone equally. It's mainly a benefit (profit wise) for the rich. They extract wealth FROM you to create theirs.

So they are basically saying "success" for that sake of it is good - w.o. saying why it matters to people.
It's the typical worship of the almighty dollar, where anything that makes a buck is good regardless of the consequences.

[Demit]

25. Why do they think that those WalMart stats are good things?

Is it good that WalMart pushed other supermarket chains out of business? Is it good that it pushed out mom-and-pop stores? Is it good that people who used to make a living wage elsewhere now only get low WalMart wages—and as someone pointed out upthread, wages so low that its workers depend on food stamps?

If they think that life in the US is bad now, imagine what a country run by WalMart would look like. All benefits would accrue to the Walton family, which is one of the richest families in the world already. Good grief.


By the way, US foreign aid is embarrassingly low, compared to aid given by other countries. It's something like 1% or less of our GDP. Look up THAT stat.

[Blue_Tires]

31. those types of people are usually the types that work for Wal-mart

usually a higher position than the cashier wage slave...

Years ago I had a co-worker whose husband was Wal-mart truck driver making decent money...And she had the same general talking points as the OP, in that Wal-mart's success was proof that 1. Every store should be a Wal-mart and 2. Government should be run like a wal-mart...This wasn't a dumb woman, but she had clearly overdosed on the propaganda koolaid...

I've got a relative who recently finished Wal-mart's management training program (I can only fault him so much because he's had employment issues, career changes and his family is desperate for some income), and it really is an indoctrination -- In addition to his newfound hatred of anything related to organized labor, he actually gets EXCITED over company news "Did you hear that Wal-mart is building a new supercenter in Southwest Nowheresville?? Even in this economy we're still expanding!!"

[TBF]

27. Republicans evidently have no use for grammar -

it is "broken" folks, not "broke".

[sinkingfeeling]

29. Go show them this movie.

http://www.walmartmovie.com/


"Dec 05, 2008 4:08:05 PM
$1.8 billion in taxpayer subsidies to cover employees' medical expenses. Lost wages for 1.6 million women. Untold numbers of jobs sent overseas. Wal-Mart continues to turn a profit while America's middle class foots the bill."

[TreasonousBastard]

30. OK, I'll bite...

since you say political discussions don't violent in your family, and a smidgeon of fact won't give them the vapors.

"1. Americans spend $36,000,000 at Wal-Mart every hour of every day.

<...>

You may think that I am complaining, but I am really laying the ground work for suggesting that MAYBE we should hire the guys who run Wal-Mart to fix the economy."

Ummm... commercial success can't be denied, but running a company is different from running a government. Think about Wal-Mart courts, Marines, roads, bank regulators, agriculture inspectors... Most things government does do not make a profit.


a. The U.S. Postal Service was established in 1775. You have had 234 years to get it right and it is broke.

The postal service delivers an envelope to every household in the US, its territories, and every foreign military base for 44 cents. Ask UPS or FedEx if they can do that. Or Wal-Mart.

b. Social Security was established in 1935. You have had 74 years to get it right and it is broke.

It's not broke-- that's a lie told by people who want to destroy it. Wal-Mart, btw, makes much of its profit by NOT having most of its employees in a pension program of any kind.

c. Fannie Mae was established in 1938. You have had 71 years to get it right and it is broke.

And it's being repaired. Until it went off track, though, it did put a lot of Americans in homes they could afford.

d. War on Poverty started in 1964. You have had 45 years to get it right; $1 trillion of our money is confiscated each year and transferred to "the poor" and they only want more.

Of course they want more. Wouldn't you? But, be that as it may, we could go back to the Biblical admonition that "The poor will always be with you..." and we should treat them as we would wish to be treated. More modern secular views say that we're a miserable society if we just let the poor, hungry, and homeless just die in misery around our well-fed, comfortable selves. There are a lot of reasons why we won't eliminate poverty, but it's the kind of thing we have to keep trying.

e. Medicare and Medicaid were established in 1965.. You have had 44 years to get it right and they are broke.

You want Wal-Mart to handle your grandmother's health care? Both programs have had political meddling screw them up, but the alternative is, again, to have the poor and/or elderly dying at our feet. High expenses and profit motive are at the root of our medical care problems here. (Maybe Wal-Mart could send patients back to China in those empty shipping containers piling up here.)

f. Freddie Mac was established in 1970. You have had 39 years to get it right and it is broke.

Same as Fannie Mae.

g. The Department of Energy was created in 1977 to lessen our dependence on foreign oil. It has ballooned to 16,000 employees with a budget of $24 billion a year and we import more oil than ever before. You had 32 years to get it right and it is an abysmal failure.

The DoE also handles our nuclear programs, including weapons. Expanding industry and population means more energy use with or without the DoE.

"You have FAILED in every "government service" you have shoved down our throats while overspending our tax dollars."

Fire departments, military, police, Coast Guard rescues...

"By the way; since the Eisenhower era, there have been over 200 taxes added to our taxpaying citizens. So during the times of government run agency’s failures, they had more tax money income that ever."

Not true-- someone else posted a chart.

"And you took over the Mustang Ranch in Nevada because they didn't pay their taxes, and now it is closed. You could not even run a house of prostitution."

Now, that's just silly. Besides, if a whorehouse can't pay its taxes, seems whoever's running it has missed the mark somewhere.

"AND YOU WANT AMERICANS TO BELIEVE YOU CAN BE TRUSTED WITH A GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTH CARE SYSTEM ??"

Well, show us precisely how Wal-Mart would run Medicare, Medicaid, the Military healthcare system including TriCare and the VA, the Indian Health Service, US Public Health hospitals, and all of those municipal emergency rooms and clinics that provide primary health care for the poor and uninsured. There's a lot of government health care out there already, and none if it is run for profit.

Folks, keep this circulating. It is very well stated. Maybe it will end up in the e-mails of some of our "duly elected" (they never read anything) and their staff will clue them in on how Americans feel.

AND

<...>


"Imagine if the *GOVERNMENT* gave 'US' the "same" support they give to other countries. Sad isn't it?"

OK, I grabbed this from Wikipedia:

In fiscal year 2009, the U.S. government allocated the following amounts for aid:

Total economic and military assistance: $47.7 billion
Total military assistance: $13.7 billion
Total economic assistance: $33.9 billion
of which, USAID assistance: $11.7 billion

That ain't really a lot of money with all the trillions the federal gummint spends.

[cags]

32. Thanks so much everyone, I've got an excellent rebuttal for them!

[Rainbowreflect]

33. In reply to #8...

8. During this same period, 31 big supermarket chains sought bankruptcy. This was in part due to walmart under selling. Too many people would rather pay 12 cents less for a box of cereal than support a local business.
How much of the profits go back to the community?
How much goes to China.
How much to the communities pay to make up for the low wages and few benefits paid to their employees?
I personally prefer small, local businesses that hire people for a living wage, support the community and the people living there.
We can have huge businesses that are hugely beneficial to a few or smaller businesses that are beneficial to many.

[Ikonoklast]

35. And at one time, the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company was the largest retailer on Earth.

Things change, and one day they will for Wal Mart.

It is inevitable.


What will everyone say when that happens?

[suffragette]

36. Info here on Walmart subsidies

Well worth the full read of the article:
http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/06/05/pay-taxes-chances-are-you-subsidize-wal-mart/

And here, for California:
http://www.walmartsubsidywatch.org/state_detail.html?state=CA


Oh, and Social Security is not broke, but there is an active movement to break it.

[MisterP]

37. WalMart turns shoppers into frenzied, materialistic barnyard animals

actually, that's unfair to barnyard animals

they asked for a minimum-wage exemption in the 90s and cost local communities loads: they're "successful" because they're corner-cutting sponges, like Perry